Governance
Research Oversight Board
Ensuring scientific integrity, ethical governance, and responsible stewardship.
1. Role of the Research Oversight Board
The Research Oversight Board (ROB) is an independent governance body responsible for:
- overseeing research integrity
- ensuring ethical and compliance standards
- reviewing sensitive or high-impact research
- guiding responsible innovation
- evaluating protocols for autonomous and quantum-aware systems
- advising on scientific direction and interdisciplinary coordination
The ROB acts as a central checkpoint for scientific accountability.
2. Responsibilities
Evaluates Research Proposals
Ensures alignment with QIST’s mission, ethical standards, and scientific rigor.
Oversees High-Risk Research
This includes work involving autonomous systems, cryptographic primitives, post-quantum mechanisms, distributed intelligence, and confidential computation.
Monitors Research Conduct
Reviews methodologies, data handling, reproducibility, and security practices.
Facilitates Peer Review
Supports independent scientific evaluation and cross-division collaboration.
Oversees Compliance and Ethics
Ensures that all research meets global standards for responsible innovation.
3. Composition
The Board consists of:
- senior researchers
- domain experts in quantum information, cryptography, and autonomous systems
- advisors in scientific ethics, safety, and responsible technology
- external consultants (as required)
Members are selected based on expertise, independence, and credibility.
4. Review Processes
The ROB follows structured processes for:
- proposal submission
- ethical and scientific evaluation
- iterative review and revision
- risk assessment
- final approval and publication readiness
High-impact or high-risk work undergoes enhanced review.
5. Independence & Accountability
The ROB:
- operates independently from operational units
- reports to the Governing Board
- maintains transparency through internal and public reporting (future)
- upholds confidentiality where required
6. Collaboration with Research Divisions
The ROB coordinates across all scientific divisions to ensure:
- interdisciplinary alignment
- ethical coherence
- shared methodological standards
- consistent review processes